Friday, September 16, 2016

the Church House Kitchen

I was going to write, I swear.  I was.  Apparently being a single mom, working full time, getting your masters degree, and redoing a house is exhausting.  Don't let me fool ya, there were plenty of days that I did nothing or was playing with my friends.  I could have written.  I just didn't have the motivation.

My tired funny is mostly snarky bitchy comments and it's hard to give a shit about a damn blog I started forever ago.  Snarky comments, sarcasm, math humor, and swear words are my love languages.

Who reads this shit anyways, right?

Apparently, a few people read it.  (I love these people BTW, even if we haven't met).  It's funny how you cheer people on from the sidelines.  A few people gave a shit how the house turned out, how the kids are, if I shaved my head like Britney in a crazy breakdown, and if I survived divorce.

 UPDATE:
The house is amazing and probably saved my sanity because I could be creative and didn't have to ask or run any ideas by anyone.  You know why?  Cause it's my fucking house and I can do whatever I want!!

The kids are spectacular and big.  The bigs are in 7th and 8th grade and are beautiful and brilliant and cheerleaders, and take the advanced classes, and they're snarky and funny.  I have determined that I will be purchasing a gun and need to learn to shoot as a result of these things.  The littles are crazy and so smart too.  Our house is always a busy hub right now.  Practices, homework, dinner, friends, friends who are now family, more practices, baths (apparently I don't want the stinky kids, eh), love, and laughter.  The laughter is good for my soul.  I miss them like crazy when they aren't here.  We go on adventures on the regular and I try to make as many memories as humanly possible.  One day I won't be cool anymore.  <----- that's a lie, I'm always gonna be cool. Damnit.

I didn't shave my head, I have seriously contemplated it though.  For real.  I did read some article about how Julianne Hough got a beach wave perm and decided that was a good idea.  Against the advice of my best friend, hairdresser, mother, and the rest of the fucking world....I got a perm.  WTF?!?  Hello disappointment,  my old friend.  As a result, my hair is significantly shorter to cut the damage off, go figure. :)

As for the divorce, I survived.

I should post about the bathroom bc that was the first room that I planned to do and the inspiration post was written before this post, but I cleaned the kitchen this morning.... so kitchen for the win.






I kept the original cabinets  and just painted them with this magical paint called Pitt-Tech.  I will NEVER use another paint on cabinets ever again.  This stuff is the shit!  Smells fucking awful and will make your brain ache.  But it doesn't chip at all.  So the brain damage done by the paint fumes was worth it.  I got a little drunk last summer and decided to paint the cabinets in my underwear in a two-day span.  Not my proudest moment, but it got fucking done and looked 967% better.





This kitchen isn't huge, but I have arranged the layout in here to better fit everything.  That floor was fucking dreadful.  Original plan: to tile in some beautiful pattern. Saw the price and the floor wasn't level AT ALL.  The house is from 1925 and was a church, it's weird.  Hence, the reason I liked it so much also it was super cheap.  New plan: to choose a good laminate floor that I loved. Plan that actually happened: choose the largest piece of remnant that Menard's has that I didn't mega hate.  The cost of stuff is insane btw.  A good friend of mine who does flooring came out and did an amazing job laying all the flooring.  I came to see it when it was done, I laid on the floor and did laminate angels.  He looked at me like I was insane, even though he knows this to be a fact :)  



This light.  This light.  OMG this light.  This had to be the light that went in here. I wanted vintage and fabulous and settled for brand new and fabulous.  It's from Lowe's.  The old man who watched me hump this fucker into the cart told me it was going to put out too much heat, and the cost to run it would be crazy. I told him if I didn't have it, my soul would die and my childrne could eat ramen for mommy to have a pretty light.  He also thought I was nuts.  He wasn't wrong.  It is like a fucking fireplace!!  Keeps the kitchen warm in the winter.  :)  I don't give a rats ass, I love it.



The sliding barn door is made from salvaged bleacher seats from the local school.  My ex husband made the door and the track for me.  He probably thinks I am crazy too, but he knows when I see a design, it's gonna happen.  The rest of this shit is all thrift store finds, which I love bc no one else has it and if it breaks, I paid very little for it.  Cheap and unique....sensing a theme?



Amazon, cause it's funny.



The countertop is laminate made to look like soapstone. High design on the cheap.  The globes are a collection I had and friends and family added to it.  They like my weird.



Target in the cheap area....trying to promote not killing the plants.



Got him at Goodwill, he had a twin...he didn't survive Oliver's need to play with him.  The birdcage is from an estate sale.  Again, weird, unique, cheap....me.



It's a real plant and it's been alive for like a year and a half now.



Other weird things I have collected or were gifts.  That vase was a fun find with a friend while thrift shopping, it's still one of my favorite trips to the thrift store. :)



The plaque is from one of my best friends, the mason jar is full of chinese fortunes...the kids and I keep them all.



My mom paints rocks with the kids, they LOVE it!  These may have accidentally been in the garbage disposal also.



Light is from Habitat for Humanity and has a match in the pantry.



Printed a bunch of my instagram pics onto magnets from Sticky9.



Garage Sale in Texas....I love toaster.



Needed a weird radio, I am always singing.  Got it off a buy sell trade site on FB.  Those are our dirty carnie fish from the fair last summer.  They are the only survivors.  Hank in the Tank and Princess Elsa of Arondale.



This is the tribe, they got big.  Oliver is not amused by his mother or sisters, but he loves us just the same. :)


XOXO
-Kari





Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Church House: Bathroom Inspiration


The first room that's gonna get it is the bathroom at the church house.  That way we have somewhere to potty while we work on everything else :)  Plus, it's small.  I seriously am super excited. Like can't sleep excited about this place.  I have lived in a rental, a tan rental, tan people.  Inside and out. For 9 months.  It's not the worst thing I've ever lived in, but I have no creative space.  My brain is going off like fireworks to get this place started.

So here is the before:
 
That vanity....OMG.  I found a little table/desk on the side of the road in September.  I snagged it and threw it in the back of the burb while it was pouring rain.  Yes, I'm that girl.  Anyhow, it says property of the US Navy on the bottom.  I have sat at it and imagine very important things were done at this little desk.  In all actuality, some navy officer probably sat with his feet on it and clipped his toenails. 
Whatever, it's mine now and last night I'm doing research for the Church House <dicking around on pinterest> and saw this and was like, BOOM, it's for the vanity!

 I love the color of that vanity and that old rug in the bathroom. The dark gray will be the bottom of the Navy desk and also the built in cabinet in the bathroom. So, that's happening.

Black ceiling, black tile floor.  If floors and ceilings can be sexy, <they totally can btw> then these are the bees knees for me.  When I decided to buy the house, I was like I can budget for these beautiful hexagon tiles.  They are around $10-$12 per square foot.  Measured the bathroom last night and was like....ummmm no.  I am going with matte black 12x12 tiles that are $1.32 per square foot.  I'd rather take a mini trip with the savings than let my 2 1/2 year old pee on it while he potty trains this summer. Just sayin. 

Love the olive green shower curtain.  What I want to do: buy olive green velvet fabric and have this luxuriously beautiful shower curtain.  What I will do: Find a set of full sheets in an olive green color I like or maybe a dark inky blue and use that as my shower curtain.  Mainly because I don't want to be sad that Oliver pissed on the shower curtain and I have to wash it for the 10th time that week.  Also, I love the old painting in the bathroom.

That tile pattern for the inside of the shower.  That's it. No argument.  It's happening. Like ASAP.

 

Another black ceiling/floor combo. Happening. and the black door and trim. Love.

All images via my hoarding of beautiful images on pinterest.

Follow me on Pinterest and on Instagram.  Do it.  Go follow me.  I'll wait. Thank you!! :)  Love your faces!

Later gators!!
Kari

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Life Happens and The Church House






So, sometimes in life shit happens.  You are forced to go on adventures that you had never planned.  You get lost along the way and end up finding yourself.    I haven't written in a year.  A year.  Like Fresh Prince said, "My life got a twist-turned upside down."  You're singing it now, aren't you?!  Don't lie.  We both know you are :) 

Well, hopefully if all plays out this will be the lead-in to a slew of posts.  Next Monday, I close on an old church house.  It was picked up and moved and converted into a house.  It has hardwood floors, huge baseboards, and needs a total makeover.  This house is going to be my creative outlet for as long as I need it to be. 

Monday evening, I will be consumed with tearing out what needs to be redone.  In all reality, I will probably order a pizza and sit in the living room in my new house on a blanket. Take it all in.  Let the weight of doing things on my own sink in, and the realization that I am capable of anything free me of any burden. 

With all that being said and without further ado, I give you The Church House before photos.












I've got big, no HUGE plans for this place and for my life in general.  Hope you stick around and see what happens!!


Later Gators,
Kari

Thursday, April 17, 2014

Front Bathroom: Makeover

The bathroom was gross when we moved in.  I painted it with some leftover paint from our last house.  It at least covered the nasty stained walls.  Then we tore out the old vanity and scraped the nasty peeling vinyl floor and redid the bathroom.

Finally something I love!!


Way Before:

First redo:

It was so much better than before, but the stripes got on my nerves after a while and it was all very beige-y.
The vanity was a cheapy from HD and the finish wore off of it way too fast.  So, I had to paint it.


The stripes had to go, had to go.  I was so tired of looking at them.










Source List:
Wall Urchin: Target Threshhold
"I'm Happy, But I'm Not Going to Clap my Hands" Art (I just asked her to print it on white paper instead of beige): ETSY
Soap dispenser: Target Threshhold
DIRTY CLEAN bath rug: Urban Outfitters (no longer available)
Hexagon Towel Holder: Urban Outfitters (no longer available) 
Stripe Towel: West Elm
Wood Stool, Mirror, Badminton Rackets: Thrifted
Emergency Box : Hobby Lobby (then painted with craft paints)
Tear paper art were made by Morgan and Hayley at school for mother's day a few years back.



xoxo

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SUNDAY: The DIY Showoff 
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Wednesday, April 16, 2014

$5 Garage Door Makeover and counter top sneak peek

Sorry, it's been 10 years since I've blogged.  I've been super busy with, well life.  It takes like 65 hours for every online teaching application.  Usually after hour 40, my computer crashes and I curl in the fetal position to cry.  I'm being a little dramatic...maybe.

I'm like thisclose to finishing up the kitchen.  On Friday, Mr. TSL has no school so we will be rocking the subway tile together.  If it doesn't get done Friday, I will do it Monday by myself.  The counter top looks amazing and I LOVE IT!!!

Her are some picks of it being glued up and then stained.  It look phenomenal!  So much better!

Now to the garage door, last summer I painted it  gray and we put up some huge house numbers Mr. TSL cut out with a jigsaw from a 1x12.

before:

After:

Now the front of the house had a little more depth.  White house, white garage door, white trim.  Got a little boring.  This helped, but I really wanted a fancier garage door, so.....

I saw these:

I saw these 5 Gallon Stir Sticks.  They were like $1.20 each at WalMart.  I painted them ORB like I painted the handle and lock on the garage door.  Then I took some liquid nails and glued them on like carriage doors :)


I really want to stain the concrete something warm to balance the gray and white....all in due time friends!!

xoxo

Follow Me on Pinterest

Linking up to:
SUNDAY: The DIY Showoff 
 MONDAY: Thrifty Decor ChickDittle Dattle,Between Naps On the Porch, Homemaker on a Dime
TUESDAY: Tip JunkieToday's Creative BlogStrictly Homemade
WEDNESDAY: Not Just A Housewife Sugar and Dots The Mommy Club  

THURSDAY:My Repurposed LifeHouse of HepworthsBeyond The Picket FenceThe Shabby Chic CottageSomewhat Simple 
FRIDAY: Fingerprints on the FridgeMiss Mustard SeedRemodelaholic, Chic on a Shoestring,  Shabby Nest
SATURDAY: Funky Junk InteriorsTatertots and Jello